Current and preservice teachers' views and beliefs regarding martial arts and the inclusion of martial arts in Australian school settings: A cross‐sectional study

Abstract Purpose This study investigates views and beliefs of current and preservice teachers regarding martial arts (MA) and the inclusion of martial arts in schools. Methods Participants completed an anonymous, 28‐item questionnaire made available online via Qualtrics (August–November 2020). Data was analysed using SPSS software to compare mean scores by sex, and between qualified teachers and preservice teachers. Qualitative data in the form of quotes was drawn upon and used to complement the quantitative results. Results Results indicate teachers and preservice teachers view MA as a worthwhile and beneficial activity for school‐aged students, and support the inclusion of MA into school settings. Conclusion These findings may be useful to inform policy and practice in schools, and the development of teacher education programs, professional development courses, and school‐based education programs utilizing MA to meet physical education learning outcomes.

settings remains a challenge, partially due to school administrators' and teachers' safety concerns, and their perceptions of MA, and/or a lack of teacher training to deliver MA in an effective manner which meets curriculum objectives. 11 Within Australia, the New South Wales (NSW), Australian Capital Territory (ACT), South Australia (SA), Victoria (VIC) Department(s) of Education each currently provide specific safety guidelines and procedures for the teaching of MA within school contexts (NSW Government). 12 The guidelines suggest that MA is acceptable for implementation in both Primary and Secondary schools (assuming the safety guidelines are followed), but it is unclear whether teachers in these states are aware of these guidelines, and data confirming if and when MA is used in schools does not exist.

Furthermore, numerous outcomes in both the current Australian
Health and Physical Education curriculum, and NSW Personal Development, Health and Physical Education curriculum lend themselves to MA. 13,14 For example, traditional MA often incorporate ethical and social education, through methods such as meditation and philosophy, discussion, and consistent etiquette expectations (bowing to each other, showing respect to higher level students and instructors, and respecting equipment) in addition to physical training. 8 A number of outcomes from the afore mentioned syllabi, associated with physical activity, align with the foundations on which MA builds on, such as "adapting movement skills in a variety of contexts." 13 For example, in grappling and wrestling, one must constantly "adapt movements and techniques" as not to be predictable and easy to counter. A student of MA must also "propose, apply, and assesses solutions to movement challenges." 13 For example: in competition or practice, if a certain technique is not effective on their opponent/training partner, they must quickly think of a solution or new technique to perform that will allow for a solution. In relation to movement patterns, a MA student may "create, perform and analyse" their own kata (sequence of movements, similar to a dance routine). 15 Since mathematical literacy was first assessed as a major domain in 2003, Australia's average score for mathematical literacy has declined by 33 points (equivalent to more than 1 year of schooling) (Thomson and colleagues). Australia is also under-performing in relation to physical activity, ranking at a tied 32nd place out of 49 countries for their "Overall Physical Activity" grade. 16 A systematic review by Watson et al. 17 concluded that classroom-based physical activity interventions may offer practical, cost-effective, strategies to increase physical activity levels as well as academic-related outcomes, particularly for improving on-task behavior, and consequentially reducing off-task classroom behavior and selective attention. 17 The novel work of Riley et al. 18 investigated this claim, and found that embedding movement-based learning in mathematics lessons had a significant positive effect on children's engagement and enjoyment, without conceding the quality of learning. 19 A more recent study, conducted by Burt et al. 7 found that a school-based martial arts program which embedded mathematics concepts into martial arts lessons had significant positive effects on physical and academic outcomes. Additionally, feasibility assessments in this study returned highly positive results relating to perceived benefits and enjoyment, gained from both student participants and their class teachers. 7 Due to an increasingly defined curriculum and increased accountability for teachers, current teachers are experiencing the overcrowding of Australian school curriculums. 20 This presents a need for innovative ways to help teachers meet demands in a way which is physically and cognitively engaging for children. The unique and diverse characteristics of MA may present teachers with the ability to integrate MA into physical education, mathematics or literacy programs, while increasing activity levels of Australian school-aged children, whose activity levels remain lower than the recommended levels.
In summary, active participation in MA has been shown to provide a wide range of benefits to school-aged children, including psychological, 5 cognitive, 6 and academic outcomes, 7 but remains a nonexistent or fringe activity in many schools around Australia. This brings to the fore a need to investigate the views and beliefs of current and preservice teachers regarding MA and the inclusion of MA in school settings.

| Recruitment and participants
Invitations were sent to principals of independent and public schools (n = 22) in the Greater Hunter region (NSW, Australia).
The questionnaire was also shared to the online student learning platform for 16 undergraduate physical education teaching courses for the programs: Bachelor of Education (Secondary) (PDHPE); Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood and Primary); Bachelor of Education (Primary), at the University of Newcastle, Australia. The questionnaire was also advertised on six Facebook sites designed for Australian teachers, and undergraduate teachers to network and communicate (after consent was received from the page administrators). Additionally, each member of the research team posted the questionnaire on their personal social media pages (e.g., twitter, Facebook).

| Consent
All participants needed to provide informed consent to complete the questionnaire.

| Analysis
Quantitative data was analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 22 (IBM Corp) and descriptive statistics were explored (means [M], standard deviations [SD]), One-way ANOVA was used to determine if differences between study outcomes existed between demographic groups. Qualitative data in the form of quotes was drawn upon used to complement the quantitative results.

| Descriptive statistics
The descriptive statistics are summarized in Table 1 indicated that they had consistently participated in MA for 5+ years.
T A B L E 1 Teachers' rankings of barriers for teaching martial arts their schools.

Rank Field Mean
Standard deviation Note: Question: Do you consider any of the following a barrier for teaching martial arts in your school.1 = strongly disagree (is not a barrier); 2 = disagree; 3 = unsure; 4 = somewhat agree; 5 = strongly agree (is a barrier).
BURT ET AL.

| Qualified (and practicing) teachers
Survey participants were predominantly from public schools, representing 75% of the sample-indicative of the larger proportion of teachers in the government sector, compared to independent and catholic schools-and teachers of Stage 3 (n = 20/36). On average, teaching experience was 3.63 years (SD = 2.27; n = 16), with only three participants stating that they had been working for 6-10 years, or longer than 10 years. 3.4 | Beliefs and attitudes toward martial arts; perceived benefits of martial arts training; future plans; most beneficial martial arts topics, as perceived by participants

| School climate
Results from practicing teachers and preservice teachers indicate a low perception of Government recognition of MA in NSW schools, with mean a participant score of 2.94 out of 5 (N = 88; SD = 0.864) for item Q17.6 (see Table 2). Most participants reported that MA training can provide a wide range of benefits to their students,

| Comparison of means-Teachers and preservice teachers
Beliefs As shown in Table 3, there were only two questions with statistically significant differences between groups. The first being Q17.6: I believe the NSW Department of Education promotes martial arts as an acceptable in-school sport (p = 0.000). This was the lowest mean score for both groups. Preservice teacher participants rated higher on this question (Teachers = 2.33; Preservice teachers = 3.21), indicating they were more likely to have a higher perception of Government recognition of MA in NSW schools. The second statistically significant difference was seen in Q17.9: If selfdefense, or a martial art (of any kind) was introduced to the curriculum, I would support this. (p = 0.031). Both groups, however scored this section highly to very highly, having both groups rating >4.2 out of 5. This had the highest mean score for both groups. Perceived benefits of martial arts training.
Two statistically significant differences were found in his section.
The first can be seen in Q18.3: Martial arts training can improve muscular fitness in children and adolescents (p = 0.039). While this was the highest mean score for both groups in this section, (score≥4.2 out of 5), practicing teachers rated this higher (score = 4.58) than preservice teachers (score = 4.23).
The second significant difference was found in question 19.1: Martial arts training can improve mental health in children and adolescents (p = 0.027). Again, both rated this section highly (score ≥ 4 out of 5), and following this trend, teachers rated this question higher (score = 4.46) than preservice teachers (score = 4.08). Although not statistically significant in most areas, the mean score for the practising teacher group was higher in all 10 questions in this section, indicating that they may place more value on MA and the benefits they believe it can provide children and adolescents than preservice teachers do. The attribute with the lowest perceived benefit was not the same for both groups. The lowest mean score for teachers was found in Q19.7: Martial arts training can…address violent/antisocial behavior in schools (mean = 4.04). The lowest mean score in this section for preservice teacher was found in Q19.6: Martial arts training can…help children and adolescents get along better with other people in their life (e.g., family, classmates, friends) (mean = 3.78).

Attitudes toward teaching martial arts
There were no significant differences between groups in this section. The scores were quite similar in all questions. All participants agreed that: the students they teach would enjoy participating in MA (scores≥ 4 out of 5); that children and adolescents in general would enjoy participating in MA (scores≥ 4 out of 5). Q20.3 was the question with the lowest mean in this section for both groups, however, both groups still indicated they would enjoy teaching MA to students (scores≥ 3.4 out of 5).

| Comparison of means-Sex
Beliefs Table 3 shows a statistically significant difference between male and

Perceived benefits of martial arts training
A statistically significant difference (p = 0.001) was seen in question 18.3: Martial arts training can improve muscular fitness in children and adolescents. Male participants responded more strongly to this question, but both groups responded strongly to this question (scores ≥4.14 out of 5). Although generally statistically nonsignificant, the "male" means for 9 out of 10 of these questions were higher than "female." All means were skewed in a way that indicates participants believe MA training can provide children and adolescents with physiological and psychological, and social benefits.

T A B L E 3 (Continued)
Attitudes toward teaching martial arts Note: Two participants who selected "Other" for sex so were not included in the subgroup analysis due to small numbers.
Abbreviations: N, number of responses; SD, standard deviation.
BURT ET AL.

| 9 of 12
Attitudes toward teaching martial arts No statistically significant differences were seen in this section, however, intergroup difference in Q20.2: I believe children and adolescents in general would enjoy participating in martial arts training approached statistical significance (p = 0.051), with the "male" group again scoring slightly more positively toward this belief. Although still in favor (scores≥3.65 out of 5), all respondents were less positive toward teaching MA to students themselves.

Future plans
There were no statistically significant differences between groups. A trend was found, with Q22.1, Q22.2, and Q22.3 all rating the highest among "female" and "male" groups. All six questions returned means skewed in favor of MA (mean≥3.21).

Most beneficial martial arts topics for children and adolescents
No statistically significant differences were found in this section.

| Qualitative feedback
Concerns for the inclusion of martial arts in (my) school There were two trends in the areas of concern given by respondents.
The most common concern related to a perceived risk of injury.